Over the last few months, I’ve had the chance to be directly involved in playtesting Battle Chronicle: The Retreat from Moscow, a new historical miniature wargaming project developed by Paul from the Pazoot channel. Having now spent a significant amount of time with it (alongside my regular gaming partner Ray) I wanted to share why this is a project I’m genuinely excited to support.
This wasn’t one of those situations where I was handed a finished ruleset and asked for a quick opinion. I’ve been involved since the early stages, when the system was still very much rough around the edges. Some of the earliest versions were, to put it politely, enthusiastic experiments held together by optimism and dice rolls. And that’s exactly why I believe in it.
Over the course of months, we repeatedly tested all four linked scenarios, deliberately pushing the rules to their limits. We found balance issues. We discovered mechanics that slowed the game down. We encountered those inevitable “well, that definitely doesn’t work” moments that every game designer secretly dreads. But what impressed me most was the process that followed.
Each round of feedback was taken seriously. Rules were revised, mechanics tightened, unclear interactions clarified, and the entire experience steadily refined through multiple iterations. This wasn’t about forcing a product out quickly, it was about making sure the final result genuinely worked on the tabletop.
What makes Battle Chronicle stand out is its focus.
Rather than being another generic historical ruleset trying to cover every conceivable period and battle, this is a tightly designed narrative experience. Each Chronicle is a self-contained cooperative skirmish mini-campaign built around a specific historical setting.
The first instalment throws players into Napoleon’s retreat from Moscow, placing them in command of desperate survivors struggling against exhaustion, attrition, freezing weather and an automated enemy system designed to create constant tension.
It feels less like playing a standard tabletop battle and more like trying to survive a collapsing historical disaster. For me personally, it’s also done something every good project should do: it got miniatures onto the table.
Ray and I have had Retreat from Moscow figures waiting for their moment for some time, and Battle Chronicle finally gave us the perfect excuse to build games around them, and actually get stuck in.
In my latest video, I talk through the full journey, from those very rough early playtests through to why I now feel confident recommending it.
If you’re interested in historical tabletop wargaming, narrative campaigns, cooperative miniatures gaming, Napoleonic history, or the design process behind new rulesets, I think you’ll find this one interesting.
And if Battle Chronicle sounds like your kind of project, keep an eye out... The Retreat from Moscow is with the printers now, with release expected soon.
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